Carl NIELSEN (1865-1931)
Symphony No. 2 The
Four Temperaments, Op. 16/FS 29 (1901-1902) [31:21]
Symphony No. 6 Sinfonia
Semplice, FS 116 (1924-1925) [32:32]
Royal Stockholm Philharmonic Orchestra/Sakari Oramo
rec. June 2014, Stockholm Concert Hall, Sweden
BIS BIS-2128 SACD [64:34]
This release has already been praised as ‘triumph for
all concerned” in download form by Dan Morgan, and in its CD/SACD form
I can only agree wholeheartedly. My first real experience with the disc was
during a long-distance drive. Despite the rather lo-fi nature of my car stereo
and the noisy surroundings it was clear from the outset that this is a recording
which presents Carl Nielsen as he should be – all musical guns blazing,
no compromises, everyone as sharp as a needle and bells and whistles pointing
in the right direction.
This is as ‘wide-awake’ a pair of performances of Nielsen symphonies
as I can recall hearing. Since that car journey I have been listening to Sir
Colin Davis’s complete cycle on the LSO Live label, and this makes one
realise just how powerful Sakari Oramo’s are. Davis’s LSO set
is good, but seems to hark back to recordings which are effective up to a
point – that point being a boundary which needs to be broken through
to create something really jaw-dropping. Oramo’s conducting takes Nielsen’s
scores as written, but makes sure that every accent, each dynamic layer and
those all-important expressive colours all make their mark in remarkable technicolour
but without unwanted added layers of interpretation. The first movement of
the Second Symphony bowls you over with sheer energy, emphasising
the tender delicacy of the second movement and the expansive nobility of the
third. Tempi are ideal for the nature of the orchestra and the non-intrusive
Stockholm acoustic, the music breathing with a natural elasticity which builds
and releases climaxes with a finely judged organic sense of flow. The RSPO
relishes the jaunty insolence of the final Allegro sanguineo, and
every little corner can be pointed to with a wink and a smile as too how glorious
it all is.
A grand salute then to all concerned for the Second Symphony, but
my jubilation in finding such a resoundingly affirmative performance of the
oft misunderstood Sixth Symphony knows no bounds. As the composer
said, “there are merry things in it”, but you can’t have
light without shadow, and Death and the Devil can also lead us on a merry
dance. The title Sinfonia semplice never seemed more ironic than
when placed against this performance, which grabs each stabbing line and argumentative
interjection in the first movement like roughly handled puppeteer’s
strings – making us into those awestruck puppets; dragged hither
and thither with no control over events both terrifyingly violent and bewitchingly
beautiful. The ‘modern music’ of the second movement mocks and
jeers the avant-garde, turning it into a circus act which amuses and disturbs,
but on which in the end we can all look with beatific condescension. David
Fannning’s booklet notes point out the Bartókian nature of the intense
string fugue which infuses the third movement with a potent but enigmatic
atmosphere, in music whose transitional feel results in a strange ambiguity
of direction. Thus becalmed, we expect urgency from the finale, but this too
is frustrated in variations which all too easily dissolve into chamber music
or passages of extreme elegiac expressiveness, the elements of which refuse
to unite into any kind of organic elegance. Nielsen has said all he wanted
to say, and now he is saying what he damn-well likes. We are fortunate to
have a team willing to give this piece such an emphatically affirmative performance
in this BIS release. I had a listen to Alan Gilbert and the New York Philharmonic
(review)
by way of a recent comparison and, while also good, there is much less intensity
in the first movement and too much expressiveness in the sparing notes of
the last, with vibrato-laden contributions lingering overly on moments which
need to be occupied with their surrounding relationships rather than with
themselves. I still think Gilbert’s Second Symphony is terrific
(review),
but all-round I would now give my laurels to Oramo.
Dominy Clements
Previous review: Dan
Morgan (Recording of the Month)
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